NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — As of Monday night, more than 21,000 Nashville Electric Service customers remain without power following last week's devastating winter storm, with thousands of affected residents concentrated across North Nashville neighborhoods.
For many families, the extended outage represents more than an inconvenience — it's become a serious health and safety risk as temperatures fluctuate and essential medical equipment remains offline.
"I could hear the trees popping outside," said James Bass, a North Nashville resident who has been without power since January 25. "At first, it didn't seem big — but it got worse. I looked out and saw limbs falling."
On Stevens Lane, evidence of the storm's destruction remains visible despite warmer temperatures. Snow still covers driveways, power lines hang dangerously low, and a fallen tree rests on a damaged car. The scene illustrates the extensive infrastructure damage that continues to challenge restoration efforts.
"This tree right here, it had leaned all the way over; it had ice in it," Bass said, pointing to the damage on his property.
Bass has relied on a generator to maintain basic power needs, but the situation has created additional challenges for his family and neighbors.
Bass's daughter, Dymetra, who lives nearby, has become a crucial lifeline for her father and other residents on the block during the extended outage.
"When he said that he saw the Channel 5 news car, I put on a sprint and ran down here because we want to tell our story," she said.
The family faces unique challenges that make relocating difficult. Bass cares for horses and chickens on his property, and icy road conditions could prevent his return for weeks. Additionally, his medical needs require powered equipment, making the generator essential for his health and safety.
"No power and medical needs, you know, he's older, so he has things that have to be powered up," Dymetra said. "So we had to have that generator."
NES officials indicate that power restoration in the 37218 zip code area may not be completed until the end of this week. The utility company says thousands of customers across multiple areas remain affected by the storm damage.
"I'm still running gas to people and food to these people here," Dymetra said. "A lot of people don't have anywhere to go. The hotels are full."
As the outage extends beyond a week, some residents are expressing frustration with the pace of restoration efforts and questioning whether adequate emergency planning was in place.
Dymetra criticized what she sees as insufficient support for vulnerable residents who cannot easily relocate during extended outages.
"Them calling me from Metro and telling me to pick up water and seek shelter, that is good, but what about these people that are out here that are suffering and can't get away, don't have family members," she said. "They have the option to say, I'm not going to do the street, we get to the power when we get to it. No, it should've been a plan."
For Bass and his North Nashville neighbors, the focus remains on when normal life can resume.
NES crews continue restoration work across Davidson County. The utility company has added a progress chart to its website to provide customers with estimated restoration timelines and created an instructional video to help residents navigate the information.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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